Use the lockdown to end many diseases?

Austria!

Could we use this one lockdown to stop more diseases? Anything that can be diagnosed and cured within 14 days can be eradicated by testing everyone this month.
Or maybe have a big extended lockdown some point in the future when we have all the tests available.


Is there any reason why this isn't achievable?

Zaph

Austria! wrote: »

Is there any reason why this isn't achievable?

Maybe because all the health workers have their hands full with COVID-19? Assuming they haven't already come down with it themselves, of course.

One eyed Jack

Austria! wrote: »

Is there any reason why this isn't achievable?

Yes, one of the main reasons I can think of immediately is that it just wouldn’t be economically feasible or viable. Think of it in terms of acceptable losses, or acceptable risks.

Put simply, the cost of what you’re suggesting would outweigh any perceived value that it is argued could be gained from it.

Leg End Reject

I'm using the time to find a cure for all cancers.

I can't see any reason it wouldn't be feasible ...

Tokyo

Austria! wrote: »

Could we use this one lockdown to stop more diseases? Anything that can be diagnosed and cured within 14 days can be eradicated by testing everyone this month.
Or maybe have a big extended lockdown some point in the future when we have all the tests available.


Is there any reason why this isn't achievable?

Because we're not 'eradicating' anything. We're simply mitigating the effects by spreading out over a much wider timeline through lockdown. Coronavirus (and everything else) will still be there after this is all over, just hopefully in a much more manageable form.

ILoveYourVibes

Yes and many ills.

Guy:Incognito

How about people just get ****ing vaccinated against the stuff we have vaccines for ?

One eyed Jack

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

How about people just get ****ing vaccinated against the stuff we have vaccines for ?

Because we’re not Cuba, is essentially the answer to your question -


Vaccine Policy Is Political by Its Very Nature

Anti-vaccination beliefs don’t follow the usual political polarization


Even if a vaccine were developed in the West, it’s unlikely it would be licensed for use under China’s mandatory immunisation programme -


How China’s protectionist vaccine policy has backfired on Beijing

El_Duderino 09

Some of the STIs must be on the decline though as people will treat them without having the chance to spread them. The Clap (old school reference) and chlamydia must be on the decline as they're treated but can't really be spread as far.

One eyed Jack

El_Duderino 09 wrote: »

Some of the STIs must be on the decline though as people will treat them without having the chance to spread them. The Clap (old school reference) and chlamydia must be on the decline as they're treated but can't really be spread as far.

Not so, unfortunately. Quite the opposite -


STDs continue rapid rise in U.S., setting new record, CDC says


And in Ireland -


STIs Increase By 7% From 2017 to 2018, According to New Report

El_Duderino 09

One eyed Jack wrote: »

Not so, unfortunately. Quite the opposite -


STDs continue rapid rise in U.S., setting new record, CDC says


And in Ireland -


STIs Increase By 7% From 2017 to 2018, According to New Report

Well, bang goes that theory then.

storker

Social distancing should be slowing down syphilis, gonorrhea and herpes.

Guy:Incognito

El_Duderino 09 wrote: »

Well, bang goes that theory then.

Hardly. The lockdown hasnt been going on for over 2 years, which is when the quoted data is from.

RandomName2

mike_ie wrote: »

Because we're not 'eradicating' anything. We're simply mitigating the effects by spreading out over a much wider timeline through lockdown. Coronavirus (and everything else) will still be there after this is all over, just hopefully in a much more manageable form.

As one epidemiologist said

'If we had a magic wand and could ensure that nobody in the world came within 6ft of another person for the next two weeks, then Covid-19 would disappear. But there is no wand'.

Presumably all other virus with short shelf lives would also disappear by the same imaginary process (flu, colds, etc.)

Hoop66

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Hardly. The lockdown hasnt been going on for over 2 years, which is when the quoted data is from.

If I was the type to cast nasturtiums, I'd guess he typed in "std rise" and just copied the link without reading/thinking.

One eyed Jack

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Hardly. The lockdown hasnt been going on for over 2 years, which is when the quoted data is from.

The misunderstanding was on my part then, I thought El_D was referring to the prevalence of preventable infections in the period since vaccines and treatments became available for the most common types of STIs, and now.

I don’t think anyone is dumb enough to think we would see a reduction in STIs in such a short space of time since containment measures to impede the spread coronavirus were implemented, particularly as the most common types of STIs often show no symptoms?

People have gone years without the infection being detected and what is being observed is a rise in the most common types of STIs due for the most part I would suggest to people’s complacency - “Treatment available? Be grand” sort of attitude.

I expect we will see the same sort of complacency and rise in infection rates if there is a treatment or vaccine developed to combat the spread of this particular infection.

One eyed Jack

Hoop66 wrote: »

If I was the type to cast nasturtiums, I'd guess he typed in "std rise" and just copied the link without reading/thinking.

If you were a cabbage? That makes no sense :pac:


Nah, I’m well aware of the rising rates of STIs among various populations. I didn’t want to overload anyone with links so I just picked an example article from the US and from Ireland. I was thinking alright that neither of the articles mentioned the rising infection rates in STIs among the elderly tbh -

STDs on the rise among seniors


I would suggest that cocooning may take on an entirely different meaning for our spritely seniors, somewhat reminiscent of the plot of a terrible 80’s movie -


Cocoon

El_Duderino 09

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Hardly. The lockdown hasnt been going on for over 2 years, which is when the quoted data is from.

Ha! Good spot. I jut took the posters word for it.

One eyed Jack

El_Duderino 09 wrote: »

Ha! Good spot. I jut took the posters word for it.

I didn’t imagine you meant that we should see results so soon as a consequence of current measures to contain the spread of coronavirus? I thought you meant that STI rates had dropped since we had developed treatments for them. I was simply pointing out that it was quite the opposite - they have increased, and continue to increase.

Edit: The whole point of providing the links to the articles was because I didn’t expect you would just take my word for it.

Guy:Incognito

One eyed Jack wrote: »

The misunderstanding was on my part then, I thought El_D was referring to the prevalence of preventable infections in the period since vaccines and treatments became available for the most common types of STIs, and now.

I don’t think anyone is dumb enough to think we would see a reduction in STIs in such a short space of time since containment measures to impede the spread coronavirus were implemented, particularly as the most common types of STIs often show no symptoms?

People have gone years without the infection being detected and what is being observed is a rise in the most common types of STIs due for the most part I would suggest to people’s complacency - “Treatment available? Be grand” sort of attitude.

I expect we will see the same sort of complacency and rise in infection rates if there is a treatment or vaccine developed to combat the spread of this particular infection.

The whole thread is about this lockdown though

One eyed Jack

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

The whole thread is about this lockdown though

Ok I read the original post completely differently then -

Austria! wrote: »

Could we use this one lockdown to stop more diseases? Anything that can be diagnosed and cured within 14 days can be eradicated by testing everyone this month.
Or maybe have a big extended lockdown some point in the future when we have all the tests available.


Is there any reason why this isn't achievable?

I thought the poster was suggesting the idea of a lockdown as a means to contain the spread of other diseases and infections such as STIs and diseases that would be preventable by measures such as vaccines and screening (also something we’re increasingly becoming complacent about).

I don’t imagine we could contain any of these diseases and infections in such a short time frame, and even if it were an extended time frame viruses would still be there (genital herpes for example doesn’t go away, it’s treatable and manageable, but the virus remains), and infections such as gonorrhoea are becoming resistant to antibiotic treatments -


Gonorrhea Antibiotic Resistance


And because of the fact that there are now better treatments available to treat HIV infection, prevention appears to have taken something of a back seat as it were, with the aims of some politicians being reducing the stigma instead of the spread -

New California Law Reduces Penalty for Knowingly Exposing Someone to HIV


US health officials haven’t completely taken leave of their senses though -


Doctors reject GBT+ men from participating in COVID-19 treatment trial due to blood donation policies

Already there’s a fair amount of bullshìt floating around about PrEP’s efficacy against coronavirus -

You may have read or heard people talking about PrEP or PEP being effective in preventing COVID-19. This is not true. There is currently no evidence to suggest that PrEP or PEP is effective against COVID-19. These are only effective in preventing HIV.


The problem with instituting any sort of a lockdown (and Leo doesn’t like to call it a lockdown, but a lockdown by any other name, etc) especially here in the West is that we simply value our liberty and freedoms and so on, and because we have treatments and vaccines already available for a lot of these infections and diseases, the idea of an extended lockdown to contain the spread of them just wouldn’t be feasible, in part due to the fact it would only render them dormant for the duration of the lockdown, in part due to the fact that we’re complacent about these diseases, and lastly in part due to the fact that some people imagine they would die if they didn’t get the ride -


Ben-Achour said, “I would be more than happy to go off of Truvada for four weeks. But obviously not for a year — that would be putting myself in danger.”